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Tuesday, July 30, 2013

Birthday: Minecraft Party

As the kids get older, cool parties are harder to come by! The best place to be inspired is in the birthday boy or girls' hobbies and interests. My creative sister recently planned a fun party for her son that I just had to share... "Carter's 12th birthday was an easy decision. He's totally into Minecraft this year and it was such an easy theme to work with. Everything in the game is pixelated, very retro video game style. So I decided to go with anything square and work from there. I was able to find some great downloads for all the blocks and character/creatures so I spent quite a bit of time cutting and folding! I think overall, they really pulled the theme together."

I'd have to agree! Minecraft is all the rage these days with tweens and teens and there are lots of free resources out there to help with the details. Minecraft is a game which allows players to build anything and everything out of 3D textured cubes. Crystal did a fabulous job pulling the party together with lots of thoughtful creativity and small touches here and there.

The weather was beautiful, so they took the party outside! This is a great way to expand your space when your at-home living space isn't ideal for a big gathering. There are likely all sorts of parks and greenspaces you can take advantage of in your neighborhood.

One of my favorite ideas with any party is including the food as part of the theme and decor. It's an easy way to add to the theme. Crystal used the food tags to tie in the theme - notice the pictures are each made of small 3D cubes! The food itself was based on the food that the main character, Steve, eats/cooks in the game. Even the cake was the same as the one in the game!

Every party needs a favor! Favors are not only a fun way to keep with a theme but it also extends the party for the guests! Whether is keeping the guests busy in the car or for days to come, favors are a special way to say thank you for coming. Crystal used bright green ("Creeper" colored) bags filled with a rubics cube, square wooden puzzles and green taffy. Crystal and her hubby found the taffy a few weeks before the party on a weekend away - when you're planning a party, it's never too early to start picking up small things and planning ahead.

Activities are also harder to come by for older kids, but I loved the creativity of the games Crystal chose. The first game, Creeper Tag, is a Minecraft version of capture the flag. Simple instructions and will probably cause everyone to break a sweat on a warm day!

The other game was Minecraft Bingo. This spin off the classic was a hit and turned out to be a highlight for Crystal. "My favorite part of the party was the Minecraft bingo. It was great to see young and old enjoying a game together. Carter's great grandmother had a blast with it, and so did Carter!"

Have you thought about creating a bingo party game for your own theme? What a simple, fun idea!